Lebanon County Farmer Appointed to United Soybean Board
HARRISBURG, PA (September 28, 2016) – Lebanon County soybean grower John Harrell of Lebanon, Pa., was appointed as a Director of the United Soybean Board (USB). Harrell, who serves on the Pennsylvania Soybean Board, is one of 73 directors of the United Soybean Board.
Harrell operates Harrell Custom Services, a grain, hog and welding operation, with help from his wife, Andrea, and daughter, Alayna. He is a member of the Lebanon County Land Preservation Board, a township supervisor in South Annville Township, and a board member of Mark Hershey Farms and the Lebanon Valley Expo facility.
Harrell will be sworn in with 39 other new and reappointed directors at USB’s annual meeting in St. Louis, Missouri, on December 9. All appointees were nominated by their Qualified State Soybean Boards (QSSBs) and confirmed by U.S. Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack.
This year’s group of 39 appointees will join the other 34 farmer-leaders in directing soy checkoff funds to research, marketing and promotion efforts that increase soybean farmer profitability. To increase the value of U.S. soy, the checkoff works with partners in the value chain, from supply to marketplace to demand, to identify and capture opportunities that increase farmer profit potential.
The 73 farmer-directors of USB oversee the investments of the soy checkoff to maximize profit opportunities for all U.S. soybean farmers. As stipulated in the federal Soybean Promotion, Research and Consumer Information Act, the USDA Agricultural Marketing Service has oversight responsibilities for USB and the soy checkoff.
About the Pennsylvania Soybean Board
The Pennsylvania Soybean Board is a farmer-controlled Qualified State Soybean Board responsible for managing Pennsylvania’s share of funds received from the nationwide Soybean Checkoff program. The funding is available under an assessment program, approved by Congress in 1990, under which soybean farmers contribute 50 cents of every $100 they receive for their beans at the first point of sale. Funds are used to develop markets, educate consumers, and research new ways to utilize and produce soybeans more efficiently. For more information, visit www.pasoybean.org